Many social services that families may use also determine
eligibility through income requirements. The Federal Poverty
Level (FPL) is the most widely used standardized measure.

“Free and reduced meals,” for example, uses measures of 135%
FPL and 185% FPL, respectively. Therefore, it is not
necessary to define and/or qualify a child under additional
income-related eligibility factors (such as
eligible/receiving WIC, TANF, Food Stamps, and Medicaid) as
free and reduced lunch encompasses the broader category of
“low income” and “facing economic hardship.”

In some communities, the free and reduced lunch meal count does
not accurately reflect the need among families. In areas
where the cost of living is high, measures of
self-sufficiency may provide a more accurate reflection of
need or risk among children and families.

Significance
of Factor in regards to School Readiness

The free and reduced meal
rate is a proxy for poverty because it is linked to a
family’s income and family size. Low-income children start
school behind their more advantaged peers, and research
shows that this achievement gap continues through the school
years.

Poverty is particularly detrimental to children and impacts
overall healthy development. Low-income children have
smaller vocabularies and are less likely to know their
letters and numbers. Young children from low-income families
score lower on tests of early learning and math. They are
also more likely to face social and economic problems later
in life, including illiteracy, teen pregnancy, high dropout
rates and unemployment1.

Children’s social competence and ability to self-regulate
are also linked to income; children from lower-income
families have lower reported levels in these skills2.

Brain development research shows a sensitive period from
prenatal through the first few years of life, when the brain
is most able to respond to and grow from environmental
stimulation. Children in poverty are disproportionately
exposed to risk factors that negatively influence brain
development.

2Gershoff , E. (November 2003).
Low income and the development of America’s kindergartners.
Living at the Edge –
Research Brief No. 4., National Center for Children in
Poverty. Retrieved
August 7, 2009, from
http://www.nccp.org/publications/pdf/text_533.pdf